MG, many us from BARF are quite familiar with Hoggetowne. While small, it is a fun faire and most folks will make it up there for at least a day or more. There are vendors there that are seldom seen elsewhere and it raises money for charity as well. I recommend spending a full day there if it works for your schedule. Hoggetowne often has a neat energy to it as a result of the mix of locals and students in Gainesville. Paul could tell you a great deal more if you would like it.

Depending on the time of month, two other events that come to mind are the Gasparilla Pirate Festival in Tampa and FlaRF down south. Gasparilla includes what is the third largest parade in the country, so there is a very broad spectrum there. It is not the traditional pirate festival and has a lot of historical and commercial overtones. If you get there earlier in the week its fun to watch the mayor defy the pirates. Later the pirates will invade by sea and the mayor will surrender the city prior to the parade. Several of us are in Gasparilla Krewes and can give you more information if you wish it.

The earlier dates for FlaRF have recently been out on Virginia Key closer to Miami rather than the later dates further north of Ft Lauderdale. FlaRF is much larger and a soft faire like BARF. I have had days I really enjoyed at FlaRF and others not so much -- mostly depending on the mix of people as you would expect. They often have some great acts and vendors.

DH is home on leave during January so we are hoping to attend a faire together since his current rotation has him missing MN all together next year. :'( Our mission is to find a faire during every other rotation home so we don't have to miss out entirely.

DH is home on leave during January so we are hoping to attend a faire together since his current rotation has him missing MN all together next year. :'( Our mission is to find a faire during every other rotation home so we don't have to miss out entirely.

And that it gets you out to faire again is just a pleasant side effect?

Thank you for any info you might have or perhaps suggestions for another faire during January...

With Hoggetowne coming up in just a few weeks, I wanted to reiterate some of the positive points that Hector mentioned. The producers, Linda and Bill, put a lot of heart and soul into the event. Some of the regular acts include Empty Hats (+Celticopia, Oops! Comedy Knife Show, Giacomo the Jester Show, and a ballads set or two of Carl's if I remember correctly), Paolo Garbanzo, Jim Greene's Rat Show, Bob DaVinci, Bunnies in Peril, Jousting, Birds of Prey, Human Chess, etc. There's usually rat pucking. The Thieves Guild cast is wonderful, and they put on a great chess game. The food vendors range from your typical fried faire indulgences to healthier, lighter options, which I've found to be delightful in having options. It's not a big drinking faire. The lanes can be tight, but only because Hoggetowne draws a massive audience for a small, two weekend faire. I've never had issues with parking, since I always arrived either early in the day or was there VERY early for setup, but the faire also offers shuttle buses. Truly, my favorite small faire in Florida, love the setting and the people, and will really miss them all, as this is my first season in years not attending due to moving back home. Love being back home, but will still miss them, as they are very near and dear to my heart.

It's looking like I'll be out of town the first weekend, so it would be the second weekend. My wife was concerned that we may not be able to do that because the 3rd is our son's 18th birthday, but I'm going to try to work around that. Maybe there will be a miracle and he'd come with us.

And that would indeed be a miracle. He spends hours playing at killing aliens and thinks we're weird for dressing up and spending hours with real people.

As I expected, my son wants to do something to celebrate his birthday on the 4th, and that most definitely will not be going to Hoggetown. And since his 18th birthday only comes around once, and Hoggetown will (hopefully) be there next year, it looks like I'm going to miss. Drat.

Thank you for any info you might have or perhaps suggestions for another faire during January...

Hi Marietta! I've performed with the belly dance troop Sahnobar the for the past two years at Hoggetowne, and I LOVE that faire. It's location is beautiful, surrounded by beautiful pine trees and the overall atmosphere has always been pleasant and welcoming. I think, it's the bigger of the "smaller" faires; the way it is laid out doesn't make it feel small at all IMHO. It has a good helping of stage acts and quite a variety of them as well.